Obama Asks African-American Churches for Help With Health Law

By Louise Radnofsky

President meets with African-American religious leaders at the White House.(White House photo)

The White House

When President Barack Obama met with African-American religious leaders at the White House Monday in advance of the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington, he had a request: He asked for their help in the final push to implement the federal health care law.

The president hosted representatives of major African-American denominations in the Roosevelt Room, where they discussed “how civil rights and equality are closely tied to voting rights and closing the gap on education, unemployment, and access to health care,” White House said in a written statement.

The president asked the leaders for their support this fall in signing up uninsured members of their congregations for health coverage, saying that around 7 million African Americans lack insurance.

“The president noted that his administration is continuing to fight to ensure that the right to vote is protected, and he also discussed the upcoming start of open enrollment in the health insurance marketplace, and that the difficult but critical work of enrolling millions of Americans in health exchanges around the country continues,” the readout of the meeting said.

“The faith leaders told the president about their plans to work with their congregations and partners to inform people about the marketplace. The president thanked the leaders for their prayers, and said that he looks forward to continuing to work with them. The president and the faith leaders concluded their meeting with a prayer.”

The Obama administration is counting on a broad coalition of supporters of the law to help sign up uninsured people for coverage this fall. Univision Communications Inc., owner of the largest U.S. Spanish-language network, is considered to be a major asset in reaching out to Hispanics. The president has previously called on Planned Parenthood clinics, which see a significant number of uninsured patients, to help too. The White House is working with allies in Hollywood, including comedian Amy Poehler and singer Jennifer Hudson, to help promote the law to younger people this fall.

They face stiff odds. One in four Americans is uncertain about whether the law is in place, and many lower-income people who are the target of the law’s provisions to expand coverage say they’ve heard little about new marketplaces opening Oct. 1 for people to sign up for coverage that begins Jan. 1.

The federal government has limited funding to try to run an official campaign for enrollment, and has also become stuck in a controversy over its work with a nonprofit, Enroll America, that is trying to reach out to people who don’t have coverage.

Attorney General Eric Holder, senior adviser to the president Valerie Jarrett, the head of the White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships Melissa Rogers, and Rev. Suzan Johnson Cook, ambassador-at-large for International Religious Freedom at the U.S. Department of State, were also there, the administration said.